The Ghost Within
by sk023
Summary: SG-1 explore a seemingly uninhabited planet.
1. Default Chapter

~~AN's:  These characters don't belong to me.  I am just having some fun with them.  Please don't sue.  BTW, thanks to Joe for comments.  Don't hate me; Teal'c will be in this story soon.  Reviews are appreciated, if not craved.~~

The hillside gate on P4X-223 shut down with a snap.  The partially forested area around the gate was momentarily silent.  The twittering noise of birds, interrupted when the gate opened, resumed.  Rustling sounds of small animals in the underbrush could be heard as they began again the daily hunt for food.  Below the gate platform, a small creek rushed down a steep slope, continuing through a lush, green pasture that reached into a horizon decorated with snow-covered mountains.  Behind the gate itself, the hillside rose steeply until it disappeared into a tree-covered mass that seemed to stretch forever towards an azure sky.  The MALP sat silently overlooking the vista with its' unblinking camera eye, as the three figures lying crumbled at the base of the stone stairs leading up to the gate did not move.  

This morning, 08:00:

The lighting in the briefing room was dim as General Hammond and SG-1 minus Teal'c, who was currently on a mission with SG-9, examined the MALP photos from P4X-223.  Colonel Jack O'Neill sat back in his chair, twirling his pencil and pretending to listen as Dr. Daniel Jackson and Major Samantha Carter debated the pros and cons of visiting the new planet.  

"Don't you think is a little, um, odd that we should be going to this place without more information?" Daniel said, tilting his head to the side.  "I mean, why are we trusting the NID?  Since when do we trust anything we would get from them?  Especially after all they have done to thwart our efforts in the past." 

"I don't know, Daniel," Sam said. "This file came from the off world rogue NID site and based on our own MALP readings, there is a concentration of Naquaada in the soil near the gate.  We need to find out if it is localized or something more.  You know we need all the Naquaada we can get for power generators and for weapons research to defeat the Goa'uld.  This might be a good source, especially one so near a Stargate.  Besides, the NID reports said that, aside from some small wildlife, this planet is uninhabited and our MALP survey concurs with that."

"That is what makes me nervous, Sam." Daniel said pinching the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger.  "I have a bad feeling about this."

"Both of you have valid points, Doctor," the general said, "but it is essential that we gain more Naquaada.  To that end, trusting the NID information is risky, but is a chance we will have to take.  What do you think, Colonel?"  

Jack, jerked out of his ruminations on the latest chances of his favorite hockey team winning the Stanley cup, flipped his pencil into the air and deftly caught it.  "I think we should go and check this place out, General.  Carter can get her samples and Daniel can look for his "rocks"..." 

"Artifacts, Jack." Daniel said, shaking his head at the futility of explaining for the umpteenth time. "They are called artifacts."  

"Right, "rocks".  Easy mission.  Besides, I noticed a little stream off to the side of the gate area; it might make for a sweet spot of fishing which would be a nice change from our usual MRE's."  Jack turned towards Daniel. "Aside from the NID unknown risk factor, lack of information and obvious "you're going fishing with me" innuendos, do you have any other problems with this?"  

"No, just some nagging suspicions that the NID files aren't telling us everything."  

"Suspicions are healthy, Daniel.  Keeps you alive." Jack replied. "So, General, whaddaya say?  Do we have a go?"

The general nodded.  "SG-1 you have a go for a 48 hour reconnaissance mission to P4X-223," he said.  "Be ready to gate out at 09:00.  Need I remind you to take care?  The NID may not seem to have any interest in this planet, but as we have seen in the past, appearances can be deceiving." 

**TBC??**


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimers:  Still don't own 'em.  Love any and all reviews…let the adventure continue!!!

The wind swirled down from the mountain, blowing playfully through the Stargate, ruffling the hair of the three figures lying quiet at the foot of the stairs.  The sudden caress caused Sam's eyes to blink open, slowly realizing where she was.  Her head was pillowed on Colonel O'Neill's chest, his arms wrapped protectively around her.  She could see the heels of Daniel's boots and the rest of him, she surmised, was laying face down a few meters away.  She sat up, the sudden movement causing her head to spin slightly and Jack's eyes to pop open and move his head so he could look around.  "Ahhh," he groaned, as the movement caused bright darts of pain to arc throughout his body.  He quickly shut his eyes.  "What truck hit me and where did it go?"  He sat up slowly, braced his elbows on his thighs and rested his now aching head in his hands.  "What happened, Carter?  I thought this was supposed to be an easy mission!"  He fumbled in his pockets for the packet of aspirin that he always kept.  Finding it, he quickly swallowed two and drank from his canteen.

"I don't know, sir," she replied as she made her way over to Daniel, who was beginning to stir.  "I think we may have passed through a gaseous wave coming from a star going supernova, causing a disturbance in the wormhole and giving us a roller coaster ride.  I thought it might happen, but I didn't think it would be so bad," this as she helped Daniel sit up.  "Daniel, are you ok?" she asked looking around for his canteen.  She picked it up and handed it to him.  "Here, drink some of this; it might make you feel a bit better."  

Daniel took the proffered canteen, unscrewed the lid and sipped the water slowly.  "Thanks," he said.  After putting the cap back on, he stretched his arms up above his head, popping his back in a few places.  "Ok, that's better," he said, standing up and giving Sam, who still looked concerned, a smile.  "So, which way?" he asked Jack who was scouting the area around the Stargate, while trying to comprehend Carter's wormhole lecture.  Jack reached into his pocket and pulled out a map.

"Well, according to the Neckties In Denial map," at this, Daniel chuckled, "the "vein" of Naquaada should be along the western side of a valley about two clicks west of the gate.  Leaving now should give us enough time for Carter to take her mineral samples, you to set up camp and for me to find a nice spot to cast my lure before the sun goes down.  We can follow the creek almost all the way there.  It looks like it veers away from the meadow next to the gate, passing through the trees and towards the valley we are looking for.  Let's go, campers." Jack took out his sunglasses and put them on.  "Carter, take point."

"Yes, sir," she replied, heading out in a westerly direction as Daniel followed behind.

The sun on P4X-223 was not overly bright.  It's light, filtered through shade trees, was warm.  Through the screening trees, Daniel could see a bright blue sky, dotted with clouds that were scudding along at a fast pace.  Must be some kind of disturbance in the upper atmospheres to make them move so fast, he thought.  "Sam," he said, picking up his pace a bit to walk beside her.  "Do you think that there is a storm coming?  Those clouds are moving awfully fast."

Jack, who had paused momentarily to examine a deep pool in the stream, caught up to them in time to hear Daniels' last statement.  "Storm?  What storm?  You didn't say anything about a storm, Carter."

Sam stopped and looked up at what she could see of the sky through the trees.  "No, Daniel, those are just cirrus clouds.  They form in higher elevations and generally just tell which way the wind is blowing.  You are thinking of cumulus clouds.  They form when…" she stopped as Jack sighed loudly.

"Carter, can we talk while we walk?  I'd like to get there some time today," Jack said, "and we haven't come that far, yet."

"Yes, sir, sorry, sir," Sam replied, beginning to walk again as Jack took point.  "You see, Daniel…" Sam continued her explanation to Daniel as Jack tuned them out.  Sometimes, he thought with grudging admiration, she seemed to know something about everything.

After walking for about an hour at a steady pace, Jack took stock of their location.  They had covered more than 2/3 of the distance to their goal.  The creek seemed to be running faster and deeper as they neared the edge of the valley.  Suddenly, a cracking noise sounded in the bushes to the left.  Jack motioned Sam and Daniel to halt.  The rustling noises continued as a small, deer-like creature burst out of the underbrush quickly followed by her young.  The female stopped a few meters away and stared at the three humans that had dared to invade her domain.  With an elegant toss of her head, she cantered off towards the creek, nimbly jumping it and disappearing into the bushes beyond, her offspring following quickly behind. 

"Wow," Daniel breathed, "she wasn't scared of us at all.  Maybe she's not even seen something like us before."

"That was amazing," Sam said, her eyes sparkling, "I don't think I've ever seen anything quite so beautiful."

Even Jack was stunned.  He merely nodded his head in agreement and began to walk again.

As they came the edge of the woods, the creek split off into two directions, one winding its' way east towards the snow covered mountains on the horizon, the other rushing westward, down into the valley.  The meadow, covered in seemingly countless purple and yellow flowers, spread out into a wide valley, surrounded on one side by tall, granite-like cliffs.  Small groves of trees flourished along the base of the western cliffs, nourished by the rambling creek.  Following the stream, Jack noticed a wide rift in the cliff wall face.  He stopped suddenly.  Sam, who was admiring the flowers, almost ran into him, followed by Daniel, who was wiping his glasses.  "What is it, Sir?" Sam said, before looking up to see what had stopped him so suddenly.  "Oh!"  "Oh, man," Daniel, his jaw agape, said, "I can't believe it."  Tucked deep into the rift and seeming to grow out of the cliff wall was a beautiful gray stone castle, complete with open drawbridge.  The three of them stood still, shocked into silence, until Jack broke the silence.  "Lucy, I'm home!"

**TBC**


	3. Chapter 3, Part 1

Don't own Stargate SG-1, The Lucille Ball Show, and any other TV reference that I might make.  Blah, Blah, Blah…

**Spoilers for:  Children of the Gods**

**AN:  My muse was really mad at me for leaving Teal'c out of the story for so long and wouldn't let me sleep until I wrote this….BTW thanks to all who have reviewed.  My muse loves it!!**

***The three of them stood still, shocked into silence, until Jack broke the silence.  "Lucy, I'm home!"*** 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Just then, Jack's radio crackled to life, causing them all to jump. 

"Colonel O'Neill, this is General Hammond.  Do you copy?"  

"Yes, sir, General," Jack replied.  "What's up?"  

"Colonel, we have just received some additional information that might be of some use to you.  I am sending Teal'c through the gate with it and some extra supplies.  The new intel will require further exploration of the area, so I am authorizing 48 additional hours for your mission.  What is your current location?"  

"We're about two clicks due west from the gate and were just about to make base camp and check out a nifty little castle that we found in the valley.  Tell Teal'c to follow the creek and he'll find us.  Oh, and General?  Let him know that the ride through the gate can be a little rough."

"Affirmative, Colonel.  He will join you within the hour.  Hammond out."****

Teal'c's Little Walk 

Having been First Prime to Apophis for many years, Teal'c was used to gate travel, but this was extreme.  After being thrown through the event horizon, he quickly somersaulted to prevent crashing into FRED, which had rolled off to one side of the platform.  Rising, he dusted himself off and looked around.  As the gate shut down, he savored the peaceful silence that descended upon the clearing.  He noticed the creek that Colonel O'Neill had mentioned following and, manipulating the remote control for FRED, walked down the steps of the gate platform towards it.  

Walking alongside FRED, Teal'c followed the creek, while reflecting on the mission that he had just returned from with SG-9.  The planet they were exploring, P3S-442, was a desert planet reminiscent of Abydos.  The ruins they were investigating, however, were so destroyed by wind and sand that no sense could be made from them.  After 48 hours of exploration, this, coupled with no signs of life and the lack of fresh water, caused SG-9's leader to make the decision to return home early.  Upon his return to the SGC, General Hammond had requested that he join SG-1 on their mission.  Teal'c agreed and after a quick shower and change of clothes, he was re-packed and ready to go.  He enjoyed spending time with the members of SG-1; they were like a family.  He would never forget the day he first met Colonel O'Neill and the instinctive trust that he inspired.  Although it was a difficult decision, Teal'c had given up his family and friends to follow someone whom he believe would one day help him to save his people from being enslaved by the Goa'uld.  Great strides had already been taken in securing this future with the demise of several System Lords.  Rebel Jaffa camps had been set up on several planets with their numbers growing slowly.  "It is just a matter of time," Teal'c thought, "until all Jaffa can live free."  As he neared the clearing that would lead into the valley, he envisioned living in peace with his son Ry'ac.  Perhaps he could renew his past relationship with Ishta, the former temple high priestess of Moloc.  Teal'c paused for a moment to tighten one of his bootlaces.  He laid the remote control down on top of the rover, while continuing with his thoughts.  Bra'tac, his mentor and friend, had told him that someday, when peace was established on Chulak, he would like to …Suddenly the ground beneath his feet gave way and he fell down through a hole for several meters.  

Landing on top of a large pile of dirt in a small cavern, Teal'c waited for the dust to settle before taking stock of any injuries.  Amazingly, he only sustained a few superficial scratches from roots and whatnot on the way down, as his pack, getting snagged on those same roots, had slowed his descent somewhat.  Teal'c reached for his radio, but found that the fall had crushed it beyond repair.  He stood and looked up through the hole that he had fallen through.  He reached up and grabbed one strong looking root to pull himself up, but it could not sustain his weight and broke off, showering him with more earth.  He coughed, as dust motes floated through air, reflected by shafts of sunlight that filtered down through the hole.  Realizing he couldn't get out that way, Teal'c removed his pack and found his flashlight.  He carefully scanned the sides of the cavern walls and noticed a person sized opening off to one side.  He carefully stepped into the opening and could hear a rushing sound and guessed that the creek that flowed overhead had a twin that ran underground.  Following the sound, Teal'c came to the end of the passage.  The noise was much louder and seemed to come from all around him.  There was a much smaller opening on one side of the passage, just big enough for him to crawl through, but without his pack.  The rushing sound was even louder through there.  

Removing the pack, he tied a length of rope to one of the arm straps and the other to his belt loop.  Pushing the flashlight ahead, Teal'c crawled into the hole and forged onwards towards the noise.  After several minutes of crawling, the ground growing damper by the minute, Teal'c could see a soft, glowing light coming from the end of the tunnel.  It ended with a gaping hole onto a narrow ledge just above a large pool of water.  The space beyond was a much larger cavern than that which he had fallen into.  The source of the glow seemed to be the water as the cavern was illuminated by it.  Nearby, a waterfall cascaded downwards into the shimmering water.  Teal'c crawled out of the hole onto the narrow ledge, pulling his pack behind him.  His breath puffed out visibly in little clouds.  He estimated that the temperature in the cavern was close to freezing.  Perched several feet above the surface of the water, he rested for a moment, and contemplated his next move.  Looking around with the aid of his flashlight, Teal'c spied what could be steps hewn into the solid stone on the other side of the cavern.  The narrow ledge he was sitting on did not extend more than a few feet on either side.  "The only way out," he thought, "is through the water."  He removed his boots and clothing, pausing only to stuff them into his pack.  He pulled out a plastic tarp, normally used for ground covering, and wrapped it around the pack, securing it with the rope.  This might help his things stay as dry as possible.  Dressed only in a pair of boxers, he eased himself over the lip of the ledge and hung suspended for a second before dropping into the water below. 

**TBC – Sorry for the cliffhanger, part 2 is almost finished…as usual reviews are humbly requested…ok, I'm begging….**


	4. Chapter 3, Part 2

**~~Author's notes:  Usual disclaimers…don't own 'em, can't afford 'em.  Just having fun…~~**

The frigid water closed over his head and Teal'c sank towards the bottom of the pool.  He began to think that perhaps this wasn't such a good idea after all.  The cold water began to numb his skin and kicking his legs, he exhaled and rose to the surface.  He paddled for a moment before reaching out to grab the rope that dangled from the ledge above.  He pulled on the rope and the plastic wrapped pack dropped into the water beside him with a splash.  With the pack trailing behind, he struck out for the closest edge nearest to where he thought he'd seen stairs.  

The water grew shallower closer to the edge.  Teal'c waded out, still pulling his pack behind.  He stood on the shore and looked back towards where he had come from.  The ledge was almost invisible in the dim light.  He unwrapped his pack and, thankfully, everything inside was dry.  Teal'c shivered for a moment, pulled out a towel and dried himself.  He quickly donned his clothes and boots and pulled his flashlight out of the pack.  He shone the light on the area that he thought he'd seen stairs in.  Yes, indeed, there was a set of stairs carved into the rough stone wall.  He shouldered his pack and cautiously began to climb the stairs.  

The stairs led to a corridor that slanted sharply upwards.  He proceeded slowly, checking the ground for possible traps.  After a few moments, the passage seemed to level out.  Teal'c shone his light towards the end of the passageway, but it seemed to be blocked by a landslide of stones that made up the corridor he was in.  Something at the edge of the pile caught his eye however.  There seemed to be a doorway partially hidden by the fallen rock.  Teal'c put down his pack and walked closer to the slide.  Yes, it was a door - and if he was careful, he might be able to get it open and see what was beyond.  He began to shift some of the larger rocks out of the way, widening the opening next to the door.  After a few minutes, he had cleared enough space so that he could push the latch that held the door closed.  He shoved downwards on the latch, inadvertently starting a small rockslide when the door popped open.  He grabbed his pack and jumped through the doorway, just as a loud rumbling noise alerted him to a more serious landslide occurrence.  Teal'c pushed against the door with all his might; managing to shove the door closed as the rock fall tried to slide further into the room.  He leaned back against the door and looked around.  

The room had a high ceiling and small triangular windows at the top on one side, which let in a small amount of light.  There was no way he could reach them.  There seemed to be no other exits as the only door was blocked by the new rockslide.  Teal'c frowned, a crease appearing in the golden tattoo on his forehead.  He set his pack down and began to carefully inspect the walls for another way out.  Examining the wall on the far side, Teal'c noticed an odd formation to several stones.  He shone his flashlight and noticed a hairline fracture running up the wall between several stones.  He pushed against it, but it did not move.  He ran his fingers along the wall, looking for any sort of loose stone or indentation that would indicate an opening mechanism.  Just as he was about to give up, his fingers found a slightly loose stone.  He pushed the stone inwards and the crack widened into a doorway.  

Bright light poured into the dark room causing Teal'c to blink.  He picked up his pack and stepped through the doorway into a large room.  The room, lit from above with massive cathedral windows, was empty.  Teal'c could see a large wooden door at one end of the room.  He hurried towards it, hoping that it was an exit to the outside.  Pulling open the door, he saw a fruit tree filled courtyard, surrounded by high walls.  He stepped out onto the terrace stone flags and looked around.  There was an arched opening at one end of the courtyard.  Teal'c walked through the fruit trees towards the archway.  Large red apples hung in abundance from the trees.  Teal'c decided against taking some, as it was an alien planet he was on after all.  

The archway led into a passage which, at the end, he could see an open drawbridge of sorts.  Teal'c walked to the end of the passageway and saw a small group of trees where a campfire was burning brightly.  Sitting around the campfire, he could see Daniel Jackson and Major Carter.  Pacing nearby was Colonel O'Neill.

"Where the heck is Teal'c?"  He heard Colonel O'Neill say loudly.  "He should have been here an hour ago."

Teal'c crossed the bridge.  As he drew nearer, he could hear the end of Major Carter's reply.

"…and FRED probably got stuck a few times and it is taking longer that we originally thought to get here," Major Carter was saying.  "You know how that thing drives."

"Jack, just sit down and relax," Daniel said.  "Teal'c will be here soon enough and then we can.."  Daniel's voice ebbed away.

"We can what, Daniel?"  Jack asked.  He turned to look at the archeologist.  "Hello!! Earth to Daniel!!"

"Uh, Jack," Daniel said, standing up slowly.  "Teal'c is over there."  He gestured in the direction of the castle.

"Where?"  Jack spun around to look in the direction of the castle.  "Oh, hey, T-buddy, I was just about to send out the cavalry.  What took you so long and where is FRED?  And for that matter, how did you get over there?" Jack finished, scratching his head.

"O'Neill, I have not noticed any equines on this planet.  I fell into a hole while enroute and ended up in an underground passage that led to a very cold pool of water.  I then found myself in a rockslide and a room with no exit.  After finding a secret door, I found myself in the castle.  I assume that FRED is where I left it – next to the hole in the woods."  Teal'c replied.

"Oh, well, glad you made it ok," Jack said.  "The rest of your story needs more explanation, but I am sure you will explain while we retrieve FRED from the woods."

"Indeed," Teal'c said, inclining his head.  "I am sure the lasagna that Dr. Frasier sent for your dinner will be cold by now."  

**TBC…Reviews always appreciated.**


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